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Andrea and I travelled to Ontario Tuesday for my brother's wedding and ended up spending a fw days on a pleasant vacation in Hamilton. These are photos (on Flickr) from that trip - most of which are from the Royal Botanical Gardens and from a hike along the Bruce Trail on the Niagara Escarpment. We also spen a day at Niagara Falls, but I'll be linking to those spectacular shots tomorrow. Anyhow, enjoy the photos. [Tags: Linking and Deep Linking, Flickr] [Comment] [Edit] [Delete] [Spam]

[link: 9 Hits] Sure he's plugging his book (to be released November - why does publishing take so long?) but this articler is a nice introduction to informal learning, beginning with an outline of the business case ("Those who leave informal learning to chance leave money on the table.") to a look at free-range learners, learning communities, and more. [Tags: Learning Communities, Books and eBooks, Online Learning Communities] [Comment] [Edit] [Delete] [Spam]

[link: 2 Hits] It's mostly just a description of the vocabulary associated with identity, but a close reading provides the reader a good understanding of the nature and complexity of identity on the web. The trick, in both identification and profiling, is to make these concepts work together in a way that is both useful and that preserves privacy. See also Wilson on Identity and e-Portfolios.
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[link: Hits] Perhaps a little over-enthusiastic, but I appreciate the sentiment expressed by Darren Kuropatwa as he describes the impact of the use of blogs in his math classes. Dean Shareski writes, "My personal growth as a learner has been exponential as a result of my exploration of technology and connectivity to some of the best and brightest in education today." This article comments on the conversation between Kuropatwa and Shareski recorded on the Ideas and Thoughts blog (scroll down to Podcast 16; individual post links are not working). Fryer comments, "Darren's answer for why this phenomenon is happening is simple: 'It's the audience.' It is not just about the in-class recognition, it is mainly about the fact that a worldwide audience is regularly visiting their blog, 'what they are writing is being read by the world,' that students are exhibiting such high levels of motivation, performance and understanding of math concepts." [Tags: Web Logs] [Comment] [Edit] [Delete] [Spam]

I want and visualize and aspire toward a system of society and learning where each person is able to rise to his or her fullest potential without social or financial encumberance, where they may express themselves fully and without reservation through art, writing, athletics, invention, or even through their avocations or lifestyle.

Where they are able to form networks of meaningful and rewarding relationships with their peers,
with people who share the same interests or hobbies, the same political or religious affiliations - or different
interests or affiliations, as the case may be.

This to me is a society where knowledge and learning are public goods, freely created and shared,
not hoarded or withheld in order to extract wealth or influence.

This is what I aspire toward, this is what I work toward. - Stephen Downes